Entered: 08/23/2010
Status: Adopted
Age: 0
Color: Liver/White
Weight:
Gender: Altered Female
Location: Baltimore, MD
Health: UTD, HW-, overall good health
Temperament: Good with women and initially skittish with men, unknown with children, sometimes skittish with dogs, unknown with cats
Original:
Life takes unexpected turns sometimes and that is what happened to Lady 10. When her owner became ill, she could no longer take care of her nine month old Springer pup so she relinquished her to a Maryland shelter. Lady found shelter life terrifying, so the staff contacted MAESSR for assistance in finding her a new home.
With each passing day, Lady is feeling more secure in her MAESSR foster home and is now eating and drinking well. She still exhibits some skittishness towards men, even barking at those she sees outside through the window and avoiding them when they come close to her. For the most part, Lady does not do this with women. This said, Lady is showing slow but clear signs of improvement in her interactions with her foster dad. She has been hanging out with both of her foster parents as they work from home whereas before she had just glued herself to her foster mom.
When she is outside and not in an enclosed area, Lady is always on a lead because she has never encountered a scent she doesn’t want to follow– especially those of chipmunks and rabbits! Since she has not had training in basic commands up to this point, Lady’s foster parents have taken on the task. They report that their pupil is progressing well as they work with her at least 3-4 times a day for short intervals and 2 times a day for at least a half hour. When she is adopted by her forever family, MAESSR requires that they take her to obedience training as well. This training requirement for adopted Springers a year and younger is a good one for all involved. It helps the pup bond with its new family and learn to be an obedient family member, ensuring a lifetime of safety and happiness.
Lady almost always comes to her foster mom when called to go outside, and she is beginning to identify the leash with fun! Housetrained, Lady signals to go out by going to the door; however, she also goes to the patio door when she sees chipmunks and squirrels, so her signaling currently gives a mixed message. Inside the house, Lady has great manners and does not beg from the table. If she does put her paws on the table, being told “off” quickly elicits the correct response from her. While in foster care, she has not done any counter-surfing nor has she tried getting into the trash cans. When her foster parents leave their home, they allow Lady the run of the house, but only after making sure she has had a good walk and has lots of toys.
At night Lady sleeps on the bed with both her foster mom and dad without any fear or hesitation although she tends to sleep at mom’s feet when she goes to bed. When they awaken, Lady is often found sleeping between them. Indoors, Lady loves to chew, so her foster parents provide her with a great variety of toys, which she loves to shred. She is not possessive of her toys or of people, though. At present, her foster parents keep their shoes and anything else they don’t want chewed out of her reach. This little girl needs lots of activity to keep her attention away from chewing! Running in the large, enclosed yard wears off some of her puppy energy as does playing in the water. She loves to try to catch the stream of water from the hose when her foster mom is watering the tomatoes!
Lady’s forever parents must be willing and able to put in the time and energy to train her properly and to ensure she gets enough exercise and entertainment. Any men in her life must be willing to give her lots of space, to play on the floor with her, and most of all to remain patient with her. This adorable and funny girl has lots of love to give.